Clutch.



C. F. RICHARDSON & G. A. MORGAN.

CLUTCH.

APPLIUATION FILED MAY 25, 1912.

1,062,852. Patented may 27, 19135 i k l COLUMBIA PLANoGkAm-I Co.. WASHINGTON. D. C.

UNITED sTATEs PATENT oEEIcE.

CHARLES E. RICHARDSON, OE wOONSOcKET, 'Enron-E IsLANnAND GERRY A. MORGAN, OE COEESTOWN, HAMPSHIRE, ASSIGTNOESTO BOSTON AUTOMATIC MACHINE COMPANY, OE BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTSA CORPORATION `OE MASSACHUSETTS.

CLUTCH.

Specification of Letters Patent y Patented May 27, 1913.

Application inea May 25, 1912. Y `serial No. 699,667.

ARDSON and GERRY A.- MORGAN, both citi-k zens of the United States, and residents, respectively, of Woonsocket, in the `county of Providence and State of Rhode Island, and, Gfostown, in the county of Hillsboro and State of New Hampshire, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Clutches, of which the following is a specilication.

The present invention relates to an improved device' or mechanism adapted to be Y used for setting machine-ry in motion, and

having the qualities of making substantially no noise,being able to act at lany point in the revolution of the partsl to be connected, and being subject to very slight wear.

The preferred embodiment of the invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which-- Figure 1 is a front elevation, Fig. 2 is a cross section on line .2--2 of Fig. 1, Figs. 3

f and 4 details of the clutching vmember and its controller and Fig. 5 is a side elevation of the clutching member.

The same reference characters indicate the same parts in all the figures.

Referring to the drawings 10 represents aV driving element which is given motion by any suitable means', such as a belt 12 driven by a pulley 13, and is'mounted' concentri- 'cally and loosely with respect to a shaft 14,

whereby it may travel continuously without operating the shaft except when desired. This driving member'has a concentric rib 15 of which the inner side forms a cylin= drical surface 16.

The clutch member is indicated at 17, being conveniently in the form of an arm pivotally connected to the shaft 14 eccentrically. thereof by means ofa pivot stud 18 carried by a head or plate 19 which is secured rigidly to the shaft; lThe clutch arm has a-portion 2O lying with-in the rib` 15 and formedi with a surface 21 adapted to 'engage the cy lindrical surface 16 of such rib. The projection 20 and rib 15, with their coacting surfaces form 'the element of a friction clutch. A finger or lug 22 is formed on the clutch arm 17 and extendsl across the rib l5. 'The means for controlling the clutch is shown particularly in Fig. 3 andconsists of a stop arm 23 and an actuator 24. Said stop larm hasa finger 25extendingl across and partly around the rim ofy the driving element (as appears in Fig.L 3) and lyingy beside the lug 22 and constituting an abut'- vment therefor, and saidarm has also a cam or wedgeportion 26. `The actuator is secured to a shaft 27, upon which yalso is secured an arm 26 carrying a stud 29 which lies beneath the cam edge 26 of the stop arm.

with respect to Figs. 1 and 3 causes the stud 29 to elevate the stop arm while movement in the other direction allows the ystop arm to descend under the forceof gravity and of a spring 30. f

The stop 4or abutment 25 normally lies in the path of t-he finger 22, but when raised as above described itis displaced from in front of `the finger, whereupon the clutch arm is left freeto be moved by a spring `31, which is connected at one end to such clutch arm and at the other to a lug 32 on the head 19. Owing to the eccentric mounting rof the arm 17, the clutch face 21 is thereby caused to engage the complemental cylindrical surface 16.

The pivot 18 is located on the opposite side of the shaft 14 from the clutch element 20, and its distance from the face 21 of Movement of the actuator 24 to the right 'A the radius of the surface 16 and the eccentricity of this pivot. Hence when the line 1between the pivot and clutch element is radial tol thedriver, the clutch face 2 1 is y out of engagement with the surface 16. This is the position which it assumes when arrested by the stop 25 as indicated in Fig. 1. Movement of the clutch arm in either direction fro-m this neutral position brings the clutch faces into engagement. spring 31 is so arranged as to move the clutch arm in the direction of motion of the driver 10 whereby the pull of the spring and the force of the driver coperate in effecting connection of the clutch. It is to be noted that the eccentricity of the pivot 18 is notkgreat, and that in consequence the path traveled by the clutch element makes a. very fine acuteA angle with the surface16. This has the effect Of mimimizing tendency to slip and cause the clutch element to grip With the utmost firmness. As a consequence thepower of the clutch automatlcally in- The creases in proportion to an increase in the i A tened on the side of the arm 17 but it might be otherwise constructed. As here shown also the abutment linger of the stop arm is on one side of the driver 10 while the stop arm as a whole and its cam portion 26, together with the arm 28, are on the other side of the driver, the abutment being carried around the rim of the driver as shownV in Fig. 2. This arrangement is not essential-to the invention but may be altered if desired. Again we have chosen to show the clutch as adapted to engage the inner sur face of the rib 15, but we do not thereby intend to restrict our claims to this arrangement, or to imply that the claims are not of suliicient scope to cover any construction, however modied, which is capable of securing the same or equivalent effects. The driven element 14 is here shown as a shaft and the driver 10 as a belt pulley, but these particular elements are merely typical of any driven member and any driver, respectively, and they are shown simply for illustration and with no intention of limiting the application of the invention to any particular machine or class of machines.

We claim:

l. The combination with a rotatable driven member, of a rotary driver independently movable with respect to the driven member and having a cylindrical surface concentric with the common axis of rota tion, a clutch member pivotally connected with said driven member eccentrically of such axis and having a portion complemen` tal to, and in the zone of such cylindrical surface, yielding means tending constantly to swing said clutch member in the direction of rotation of the driver, a stop in the path of the clutch member, and means for displacing said stop.

2.' The combination with a rotatable driven member, of a rotary driver independently movable with respect to the driven member and having a cylindrical surface concentric withthe common axis of rotation, a clutch member having an active portion complemental to such cylindrical surface, pivotally connected to the driven member at such a point that movement about its pivot in either direction from a neutral position will bring its active portion into contact with the cylindrical surface, yielding means tending constantly to swin the clutch member about its pivot in the irection of rotation of the driver, and means for rendering the clutch member operative and inoperative.

3. A driving mechanism comprising a driver and a drivenmember, both rotatable about the same axis independently of one another and the driver having a rib concentric with such axis formed with an interior cylindrical clutching surface, a clutch arm pivotally connected to the driven member eccentrically of the axis and having an active element lying within and near the said cylindrical surface on the opposite side of the axis from its pivot, the distance of such element from the pivot being greaterl than the radius of the cylindrical surface and less than the combined length of this radius and the eccentricity of the pivot, yielding means tending to swing the clutch arm about its pivot in the same direction as that in which the driver rotates, and a stop member movable into and out of contact with a part of the clutch arm.

4. The combination of a driver normally in continuous rotation having a cylindrical clutching surface concentric with its axis, a driven member adapted to rotate about the same axis, a clutch member pivotally connected to the driven member eccentric to such axis and having a complemental face adapted to coact with the cylindrical surface, the pivot and face of said member being located at correspondingly the same side of the axis and the portion of the cylindrical surface nearest to such face, respectively, means tending yieldingly and constantly to swing the clutch arm about its pivot in the direction of rotation of the driver, and a stop normally in the path of the clutch arm and displaceable from such path.

5. A driving mechanism comprising a driven member, a pulley normally in continuous rotation and loose with respect to said driven member, said pulley having a rib with a clutch face concentric with the driven member, a clutch member pivotally con nected with the driven member eccentrically thereof, means normally tending to bring the clutch member into frictional engagement with the said concentric surface, a stop in the path of said clutch member for arresting the same and holding it out of engagement with said surface, and means for displacing said stop from said path.

6. A driving mechanism comprising a rotatable shaft, a constantly rotating wheel loosely mounted concentrically with said shaft and having a smooth cylindrical surface also concentric therewith, a plate secured to the shaft, a clutch arm pivoted upon said plate having a clutching portion lying adjacent to said concentric surface, the

pivot of the arm being eccentric to the shaft, a spring arranged. to exert force on said arm in such direction as to tend to swing it about its pivot in the direction of rotation of the wheel, whereby to bring `the clutching portion into frictional engagement with the concentric surface, a Stop in the path of a portion of said arm normally resisting movement thereof and of the shaft, and means controlled by thev operator for displacing the stop from'such path.

7. A driving mechanism comprising the combination of a supporting structure including a side frame, a shaft having a bearing in said side frame, a driving wheel loosely mounted upon said shaft and having a cylindrical surface concentric therewith, means for rotating said pulley, a clutch arm pivotally connected with the shaft eccentrically thereof, located on the outer face of the pulley, and having a portion located within the circle bounded by the concentric face of the driving wheel and located also on the opposite side of the axis of the shaft 'from the pivot of said arm, a spring conarm, whereby to engage the latter and arrest movement thereof of the shaft, an arm mounted upon the side frame and adapted to sol swing, `having a stud engaging a cam porv tion of said lever, and means by which the operator may swing said arm in a directionl such as toremove the stop from the path of the clutch arm. Y

In testimony whereof we have afxed our signatures, in presence of two Witnesses.

CHARLES F. RICHARDSON. yGERRY A. MORGAN.

Witnesses:

CHARLES E. CLARK, GEORGE M. MCGKINLEY..

Copies of this patent may be obta'ined for ve cents each,A by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C. 

